It's The Most Wonderful Time (Of The Month)
by Seraphina Elias
Summary: When Regina's period send's her into a frenzy of power, rage, and revenge Emma has to do what she can to stop her, with as few casualties as possible.


Emma ran out of the apartment and straight for her car, ignoring the rain that was beating against her and anything else that wasn't under some sort of cover. The second she opened the door, the side of her seat was pelted with the falling water. Being quick to get in, she looked at the interior of her door and smiled. The rainy days that had come the last few months were filled with good memories, one's that she'd hold onto even after old age rid her mind of any others. The woman sat back and watched the drops hitting the glass for a few minutes before starting the engine and pulling away from the curb.

Outside, the front of the Mill's residence was dark, except for the porch light that was on almost all the time. As she made her way to the front door, she could smell smoke coming from the chimney. Henry must have lit the fire before he went to his grandparent's place. He knew this time was always a little more difficult for his mother, so he always did what he could to make her comfortable. The last time he rubbed her shoulders and feet before leaving, because Emma had sprained her wrist. Another memory she held close enough to never let it leave. Their son was growing into one of the most respectful young men either of them had ever met. There were no words to describe how happy they were with him and how proud they were of what he'd accomplished so far.

As she opened the door, she called, "Regina?"

Clammering resounded through the hall, from the kitchen with a reply, "In here Emma."

The blonde took off her coat and hung it up on the coat rack, revealing a thin, light blue shirt that was soaked through a little on her shoulders and chest. Walking to the kitchen she pulled her hair back into a ponytail and smiled the second she laid eyes on the mayor. Regina returned the smile and greeted her with a warm hug. Emma put her arms around the closest thing she had to a real future and left a kiss in her silky soft, brunette hair. She could feel a kiss land on her shoulder in response before they gave each other a light squeeze and walked to the stove, where Regina had been cooking.

"Whatcha makin?" Emma asked.

"I have a beef stew on the stove, the bread is in the breadmaker, and I fixed us up a caesar salad."

Emma looked impressed, "Well you sure pulled out all the stops."

"I know," Regina responded as she turned down the burner. "I wanted to do something to get my mind off of things. See if I can't focus on something else."

The last several weeks she'd had trouble thinking of anything other than Daniel and it had begun to eat at her. This time of the month was difficult enough without that part of her past rearing it's ugly head. The last time this happened the town barely survived and Regina nearly destroyed herself in the process of saving Storybrooke. Henry still struggled with nightmares of Regina dying. This was going to be tough, but if she was determined to not let it get that bad again, Emma knew she could do it. Her loss was something that would always be hard to cope with, but even she couldn't take herself out.

A single tear fell out of her eye and rolled down her cheek. Emma wiped it away and said, "Look, if you want, I can cook and you can-"

"No. I need to do this. Relaxing will just give me time to think about it." She paused and looked at her friend out of the corner of her eye, "Them."

"What?"

"It'll give me time to think about them. Daniel and-" Another tear fell, "Look, just get the salad out and check the timer on the bread."

Emma nodded and walked to the fridge. Two months ago Regina had come clean about a secret she'd kept from everyone. Not even Daniel knew about it and had he survived another few minutes, she would have been able to share it with him. He died a father and it was something she would never get to tell him; he would never know about. Unfortunately the baby died only days after losing him. There was no way to know if it was a boy or a girl, but she always imagined having a son.

Regina clenched her hands into a fist as she turned and headed for the front door. Throwing the bowl onto the counter, Emma raced to get in front of her and keep her from leaving. In one swift motion, the evil queen threw the savior into nearest wall, rendering her useless just long enough to make it to the cemetery, where Cora resided. She hated her mother and wanted her to die, but before she could summon her, Emma used her magic to silence the woman. As much as she wanted her friend to get her revenge, she knew that wouldn't satisfy her thirst for evening the score. It would never end and with the amount of power Regina held in her hands, every realm were take a catastrophic blow.

"This isn't the way!" Emma told her. "Regina, if you kill her, you'll feel better for a little while, but what about when that goes away? What are gonna do the next time to feel better? He's gone. Both of them are. You can't change that and killing her won't fill that hole in your heart."

Fight back, Regina managed to muster, "Yes it will."

"No!" Emma yelled at her, "You'll just get more angry as time goes on, because the person you wanted to suffer is already gone."

"I can keep bringing her back."

"For how long?"

Regina shouted, "As long as it takes!"

"How long will that be?"

"ETERNITY!"

Emma released the queen, "What is that going to do?"

Regina stepped within an inch of Emma's face and yelled, "Nothing!"

The rage the blonde woman was beginning to feel finally showed as she answered, "Then why do it?" She looked deep into the other one's eyes, "What is this going to solve? You think I don't want to get back at you for everything you took from me? My mom. My dad. Graham. You took everything from me before I ever even got the chance to know you, yet all I can do is think about you and me being together."

"Why?"

"Because I forgive you!" Emma answered, fighting the urge to cry. Her emotions soon overwhelmed her and she broke down, "I'm tired of being angry at you. I let it go, because no matter how much I lost, I know I can't replace the happiness that I feel with you and with Henry. The family I have now isn't the best, but if things had gone as planned it may not have come to this. It may have turned into something so much worse. I could have died in some war before ever meeting Neal. Hell, Neal may have lived and died before I was even old enough to have kids and Henry wouldn't be here today!"

Regina fell to her knees, "I just want him back." Emma's eyes fell to the ground as he heart sank. "You have Henry. I could have had a son. Even if I didn't have Daniel."

Emma could feel her heart breaking as she knelt down and held Regina, as close as she could. "I know." She let Regina sob into her for a while, before helping her up and walking her back to the house, through the pouring rain.

Once they were home, Emma helped her up the stairs to get dressed, then headed back downstairs. Before chasing after her, she'd remembered to turn off the stove, to keep the pot from boiling over. As she flipped the burner back on, the timer on the bread maker went off and she opened the lid, revealing a fresh loaf of bread. She pulled it out and sliced off two pieces, then put the rest of it away for another time. Sure that Regina did want to come back down, Emma served up the meal for each of them and carried it up the stairs, on a tray.

Regina laid on the bed, in a pair a dry pajamas as she looked out the window. Emma gave her a bowl and piece of bread as she asked, "Do you want to watch TV?"

"No," The dark haired woman answered, "I just want to talk."

Emma smiled, "Okay. We can do that."


End file.
